A Royal Navy warship and a Merlin anti-submarine helicopter are operating off the Irish coast today, providing air defence for the meeting of EU defence ministers in County Wicklow, with the ship required to remain outside Irish territorial waters, according to The Irish Times.
Conor Gallagher, the paper’s crime and security correspondent, reports that the ship was requested by Irish authorities to provide air defence during the event at Druids Glen, part of Ireland’s hosting of the EU presidency, and that the Irish Defence Forces lack the capability to conduct long-range air defence themselves.
The vessel has its transponder switched off and is not visible on open source marine tracking. The helicopter operating from it was trackable for around two hours on Monday morning, using the callsign Renegade, and The Irish Times reports that it appeared to briefly inspect a Portuguese cargo ship, which an Irish Air Corps aircraft later inspected as well.
The Merlin is the Royal Navy’s principal anti-submarine helicopter, carrying dipping sonar, sonobuoys and a search radar, and is equally capable of building a surface picture, which is the role it appears to be performing here.
The constitutional limit
As we reported last week, the requirement for the ship to stay offshore stems from legal advice to the Irish Government that deploying foreign military forces on active operations within Irish territory would likely be unconstitutional even where their presence had been formally requested. The advice cites Article 15 of the constitution, under which only the Oireachtas may raise a military force on Irish territory.
Irish territorial waters extend 12 nautical miles, or around 22 kilometres, from the coast.
When we asked about the tasking last week, a Royal Navy spokesperson told us: “The UK and Ireland regularly cooperate on shared security challenges. We do not speculate on potential operational tasking of Royal Navy vessels.”
The Irish Government has so far declined to confirm officially that it requested assistance from foreign forces during the presidency, according to the paper.
Criticism at Westminster
The arrangement has drawn objection from at least one British MP. As we reported, John Cooper, the Conservative member for Dumfries and Galloway, wrote to Defence Secretary Wes Streeting on 28 August saying he was aghast at reports that any vessel involved must stay outside the territorial limit.
He wrote: “This insistence that foreign warships remain outside Irish limits hampers their effectiveness. The Royal Navy is being asked to do a bad job. To add insult to injury, British taxpayers are footing the bill for this bodge.”
Cooper accused Ireland of freeloading on defence, argued that its policy of military neutrality has not been matched by investment in its own capability, and noted that while the Irish Defence Forces had spotted uncrewed aircraft in previous incidents they had no ability to interdict them, lacking meaningful air-to-air or surface-to-air capability beyond a small number of short-range missiles.
Not the first time
This is the second occasion on which a foreign navy has provided air defence for Irish EU presidency events. The French air defence frigate Aquitaine was stationed off Dublin on 1 July, outside territorial waters, during events opening the presidency, and did the same off the coast of County Cork the following day during a meeting of EU commissioners, with an Irish naval officer embarked.
Irish forces are running their own operation alongside the foreign contribution. Operation Fianna is directed by a joint task force based at McKee Barracks in Dublin, coordinating ground, sea and air units including anti-drone teams at major events. The Irish Times reports that the Naval Service ship LÉ Samuel Beckett was operating closer inshore off Wicklow on Monday, with a C295 maritime patrol aircraft and helicopters flying patrols.
Meanwhile, talks are apparently stepping up between Dublin and London about the “JEF+” mentioned in the Maritime Strategy earlier in the year. for now reportedly an “observer” status given the limits of the NS.
Promising even if it is observer status.
I’d say tied into intelligence sharing over shadow fleet operations, there was another article in the Sunday Times interviewing the NS Commander in charge of the NOC.
Saw the article. The procurements and refits over the next two years will be a sight to see.
I really am curious on the armor purchase and the numbers breakdown per class of vehicle when released.
So Sea Ceptor has an admitted 15 mile range ( probably closer to 20 miles) and the ship is outside of the Republics 12 mile maritime boarder…
Is the meeting on the beach, because having a T23 that far away is about as useful as a chocolate teapot.
You would need a Type 45 to place a genuine air defence umbrella above them.
Granted the picture is a T23 but the article doesn’t say what class the ship actually is. I saw an article over the weekend (Times I think) that mentioned a T45 destroyer was going to get the job..! It seems the RN is being rather coy about which class has been deployed.
Cheers CR
It’ll either be HMS St Alban’s or HMS Duncan.
Pretty sure Duncan is in the Baltic right now, so my money’s on St Albans.
According to Navy Lookout it is HMS ST Albans.
It’s a 23, she’s not broadcasting but her Merlin was briefly.
Not heard of Merlins deploying from a T45, thought they only fly off Carriers, T23 or RFA.
So assume a T23.
With so few ships in the RN now and even fewer available, a random guess at which ship it is would stand a good chance of being spot on.
Its in Druids Glen Resort Hotel which is very close to the coast.
Unless the threat path crosses nearby the T23 it cannot do anything. Just posturing in an age where most missiles can have way points.
The hotel is about a mile from the coast, even in international waters a T23 can through up a good protective bubble. Unless Russia want to attack with a ballistic missile.
You should know that a Russian submarine can launch a cruise missile that approaches along the coastline which a frigate with a +20km range missile at 22km from coast cannot intercept… it can even come inland if the Russian put waypoints inland.
And it is specially difficult for short range systems to intercept cross targets.
I would have been better to put a Sky Sabre system.
I wouldn’t say Russia has many cruise missiles left that do that. Also with it being a T23 with a Merlin, it should deter a Russian sub from doing anything.
Kalibr missiles have hundred of km in range. Submarine can be way out range of T23 sensors and Merlin.
Of course this would be a significant aggression that would change the world if it occurs.
Exactly, and i wouldn’t say they have any of those missiles left.
I think that was the point being raised.
The UK providing any assistance to the irish republic raises a further issue that we simply free up republican monies for them to cause havoc against the UK. It has been known for 130 years that the Dublin government partly funds and encourages terrorists of their tribe to terrorise Northern Ireland.
They only co-operate with us when it suits them.
That’s a neat trick, funding something decades before even the Free State came into existence, who leaked the Time Machine?
What the fuck is a british naval ship and helicopter doing protecting the EU meeting in Eire . BRITAIN IS NOT IN THE EU FFS ! let them protect their own dirty empire .
It’s time Ireland stopped freeloading off anyone they can for their defence.
It’s truly pathetic that the Irish scav’s refuse to invest in their own Navy – Air Force and Army.
I sincerely hope the Irish are compensating the British Government for the use of Royal Navy assets.
It’s time the British Government tell Ireland no more military assistance until they start stepping up.
There’s a couple of billion worth of orders being processed right now.
Mark Ireland spends 0.2% of its GDP on defence – it’s an absolute joke.
I’m well aware of what we spend, though technically that figure doesn’t count said current procurement as its in the NDP not the Defence budget. But the DF is less than 10K, if the budget went up to even 1% today, all that would happen is at least .9% would be returned to Finance, the DF literally can’t spend that money usefully where they are right now.
They can set that money aside in a pot and not touch it till they know what to spend it on.. and/or pay now and receive assets later
No they can’t, the budget must be spent in the year or it reverts to Finance (who tend to be “unimpressed” if the offending department screws up either way), there’s no “holdover” mechanism. Moreover what exact “assets” are you suggesting?
pretty much, the same as UK government departments
While I agree Ireland needs to step up its defence spending, we are where we are. Even if they found the money overnight (and given how long it’s taking for the UK to go from 2% to 3% an increase from 0.2% to 2% of GDP is an almost impossible stretch in spending for the Republic to commit to in one go), there’s no way Ireland’s military can build up the capacity in the short term. They lack the skills and the infrastructure and they can’t build them up in a hurry. Meanwhile, Ireland is a vulnerable back door to the rest of Europe and the UK in particular. We need to make it clear to them they need to increase spending, but also be supportive. Their government recognises the threat but does the public? There is a strong attachment to neutrality that needs to be overcome and we won’t get them on board by threatening them. Also, given our shared history and the level of support for the EU in the Republic, we (the UK that is) should try to take a backseat in any negotiations with them and ask other NATO and EU countries to take a lead. Even while we provide assistance in the interim.
How about defending the U.K. ? The primary responsibility of this government is to protect Britain the British people and British interests …not the rest of the world . Once we get that aspect right then we can start offering support to foreign entities. ….. reality is we have run our armed forces wilfully and deliberately into the ground on the high alter of Internationalism and globalism … not what the powers that be who control us are supposed to be here for ….
But I’m sure the international brigade the same type of idiots who marched off to Spain in 1936 and who are desperate and I mean desperate for the U.K. to enter WW3 will howl with disagreement ……treason is everywhere on these shores ….
Sit yerself down, and take a nice whiskey(jamesons irish whiskey),. We are helping out our closest neighbours. Helping defend lreland also helps defend the uk.perhaps think about the thousands of irish boys who gave their lives defending the uk.
In the long run, protecting Ireland is in our national interest. It’s also part our national character. Helping out is what I think most of us would want our military to do. Just as most Brits want us to help Ukraine. So maybe that’s exactly what the powers that be should do.
Saying first we should get our own house in order is really saying we shouldn’t help foreigners, because we’ll never have our house in order. However we can’t let that stop us doing what we think is right.
Freeloaders.
While Ireland steal billions from their EU partners, they expect the EU and also the UK, provided they stay outside their territorial limits, to protect them.
And it is not me accusing the Irish of theft. That comes from the EU Parliament itself.
Source. EU Parliament. Report on financial crimes, tax evasion and tax avoidance. 26-March-19. Items 327 thru 330.
Totally agree Jon. Bunch of freeloaders who despise us and our flag 🇬🇧
Totally agree Jon. Bunch of freeloaders.